The NFL's most successful team in recent years, the New England Patriots, will be the guests of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers next year in the third regular-season game to be staged at Wembley. The Patriots have won the Super Bowl in three of the last seven years, while the Buccaneers, who are owned by Manchester United owner Malcolm Glazer, won the championship in 2003.

"Over the past two years, we have seen first-hand the excitement that exists for our sport in the UK," said the NFL commissioner, Roger Goodell. "The games have helped us to deepend our connection with our UK fans as well as create new ones. We are looking forward to another outstanding game in 2009."

The game will be staged on October 25 and it is believed it could be the first of two to be played in the UK next year. The NFL has been pleased with the success of the two games to have already been played at Wembley - last year tickets sold an incredible rate for the Miami Dolphins' clash with the New York Giants, and this year the New Orleans Saints played out a thrilling 37-32 win over the San Diego Chargers in front of an 83,226 crowd - and is eager to capitalise on this interest, as shown by the decision to send over two such high-profile teams.

"We are very excited at the prospect of welcoming two of the NFL's leading teams to Wembley," said NFL UK's managing director, Alistair Kirkwood. "The continued commitment of the NFL to the UK is a tribute to everyone who has made the previous games such a success, from the fans and our partners to the teams themselves. Both the Buccaneers and Patriots have strong fan-bases here and are names that will be familiar even to those who don't follow the sport closely. We expect this to be another fantastic game and an outstanding event."

The Saints coach, Sean Payton, was critical of certain aspects of the trip to London in October, such as the effect the journey had on his players and that one of New Orleans' home games was being taken away from their fans, but both the Buccaneers and Patriots expressed their delight at being invited to travel across the Atlantic.

"The Tampa Bay Buccaneers organisation is extremely excited and honoured to be chosen to participate in the NFL International Series," said Joel Glazer, the Buccaneers executive vice-president. "We look forward to being part of the NFL's global outreach and playing our great game in front of Buccaneers fans overseas."

The New England Patriots chairman, Robert Kraft, added: "We are proud to be selected by the NFL to be featured in next year's international game. We have had a lot of memorable moments in recent years. I am sure our trip to the United Kingdom next year will prove to be an unforgettable experience for our players and coaches, as well as the many fans that will travel to the game. I think it is fitting that New England's first game to be played outside of North America will be in England. I know that the UK is home to some of our most passionate Patriots fans and we look forward to the experience."